1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a body panel assembly for absorbing energy and, more particularly, to a vehicle door for dissipating impact energy exerted on a vehicle panel.
2. Discussion
It is well known that vehicles may collide with obstacles during operation. Vehicles have been designed to withstand energy on impact and to ensure the safety of passengers.
Manufactures have attempted to increase the safety of passengers during side impact by designing vehicle doors to absorb impact energy. Such attempts include vehicle doors with impact beams to reduce impact force. However, on impact, these beams often release from the door. These vehicle doors are heavy and expensive to manufacture. Also, the beams obstruct the space within the interior of the door dislocating mechanisms and wiring to be installed inside the door.
Further, vehicle doors have been constructed with padding along their inside panel. However, the padding is positioned only in select areas and only absorbs a limited amount of energy. The limited amount of padding has not increased passenger safety. Also, these doors with interior padding have diminished the amount of interior space available in the vehicle.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a vehicle door designed to absorb impact energy during side impact. Further it is desirable to reduce the cost and the weight of the vehicle door. This is accomplished by removing impact beams positioned between the panels of the door. Further, it is desirable to save time and money during assembly by attaching the door hardware to an intermediate panel.